Saimo Chahal
Partner
Human rights and public law
Saimo Chahal is Partner and head of the Civil Liberties and Social Welfare Team in the Public Law & Human Rights department of Bindmans LLP. She specializes in Human Rights and Civil Liberties cases in a wide range of areas, including Inquests, Inquiries, Mental Health, Prison Law and Healthcare.
Saimo is widely acclaimed for the excellence of her legal work. Many of Saimo’s cases have set precedents and changed the law. The cases invariably involve issues of wider public interest which have resulted in changes in policy and practice.
Saimo has had numerous successes in high profile cases at the cutting edge of the law. She has had a record three successes before the House of Lords in the last year. The cases are about Art 2 ECHR (the right to life), the substantive Art 2 duty: Savage v South Essex Partnership NHS Trust [2008] UKHL 74 and the Art 2 Investigative obligation : R (JL) v The Secretary of State [2008] UKHL 68.
Saimo has had a landmark ruling on a third case in the House of Lords on the scope of Art 8 ECHR (the right to respect for private and family life), R (Debbie Purdy) v The Director of Public Prosecutions [2009] UKHL. As a result of this case the DPP is required to publish his prosecution policy on assisted suicide. The case has had far reaching implications in terms of the debate on the law on assisted suicide.
Saimo also won a significant victory in the case of FB v The Director of Public Prosecutions [2009] EWHC 106 (Admin) on the lawfulness of the DPP’s failure to prosecute, which resulted in a Declaration and award of damages under the Human Rights Act for the victim, a first of its kind. Saimo has an important case pending in the Court of Appeal on the entitlement to welfare benefits for mental patients transferred from prison to hospital in R (RD and PM) v The DWP CA 2819.
Please click here for an overview of Saimo's important cases.
Saimo has been quoted in the press frequently, in particular about the rights of mentally ill victims of crime as well as the poor success rate in the prosecution of rape cases.
Saimo has acted in numerous Inquest cases and has led the way on two public Inquiries, ensuring that they comply with Art 2 ECHR. The lack of independence, delay and procedural failures in the JL Inquiry is now under challenge by way of judicial review-hearing pending in the High Court at the end of July 2009.
Saimo was awarded the accolade of The Law Society’s Solicitor of the Year winning the Excellence Award in October 2008 for her cutting edge Human Rights work.
Saimo was awarded Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year 2006 - Mental Health for constantly pushing the boundaries of the law on behalf of people with mental illness, disabilities and the vulnerable.
Saimo was profiled as a “trail blazer” in the newsletter of the British Institute of Human Rights Autumn 2006 for her cutting edge work and use of Human Rights. Please click on the link below to view the article:
Saimo was Lawyer of the Month in the Black Lawyer’s Directory in January 2008. Please click on the link below to view the article:
Saimo was Lawyer of the Week in the Times in June 2008 – acting in Debbie Purdy’s case. Please click on the link below to view the article:
Also, Saimo was Lawyer in the News in the Gazette in June 2008 – acting in Debbie Purdy’s case. Please click on the link below to view the article:
Fiona Bawden, journalist, wrote an article: "Trial by Tabloids for Ripper’s Lawyer" in The Guardian in June 2008 where she writes that "Saimo Chahal, undeterred leading human rights lawyer, was attacked by the tabloid press for representing Peter Sutcliffe". Please click on the link below to view the article:
Saimo was featured in The Guardian on 12th December 2008 where Afua Hirsch writes: “She has built a career on helping people turn disadvantage into pioneering litigation, a record that won her the legal profession’s highest accolade….Law Society Solicitor of the Year.” Please click on the link below to view the article:
Saimo writes and lectures regularly on the law. Articles include:
Following her win as the Solicitor of the Year Law Society's Excellence Awards, Saimo was interviewed by the Solicitors' Journal. Please click below to view the article:
Saimo was interviewed by The Times in December 2008 on the subject of assisted suicide and on the challenges of her work. Please click below to view the article:
Saimo was interviewed by The Independent and The Independent on Sunday in January 2009 on the subject of mentally ill victims of crime. Please click below to view the articles:
The Times published an article written by Saimo in January 2009. Please click below to view the article:
Lexis Nexis interviewed Saimo in March 2009 for Lawleader on the case of Debbie Purdy and the implications of the Court of Appeal judgment. To view the complete article please click below:
See also Saimo’s speech from the Bindmans UCL 5th Annual Debate on the topic of assisted suicide. Please click here to view Saimo's speech.
Saimo led a round table discussion on extending the scope of Article 2 for people with disabilities, hosted by the Equalities and Human Rights Commission in May 2009. Please click here to see Saimo’s paper from this event.
On 4th January 2010, Saimo featured in The Lawyer as one of the UK's leading Campaigning Lawyers. The Lawyer's annual Hot 100 recognises a group of lawyers who have been at the top of their games during the past 12 months.
The Lawyer's Hot 100 report describes Saimo as follows:
"In terms of campaigning lawyers, Bindmans partner Saimo Chahal has been setting the standard for some time. She has taken on – and won – some of the most high-profile and contentious cases to hit the headlines in recent years. In 2009 Chahal emerged victorious from the very last session at the House of Lords when the Law Lords found in favour of Debbie Purdy and forced the Law Lords to clarify the ruling on assisted suicide. The Purdy case was Chahal’s third Lords win in just nine months. No wonder she was the Law Society’s solicitor of the year in 2009."
Please click on the link below to view an extract from the Hot 100 report:
Saimo graduated from Sussex University with a BA Hons in Sociology. Before qualifying in 1990, she worked for several years in Law Centres. She became a partner at Bindmans in 1995.
What the professional directories say
Sources are “in awe of her incredible commitment to her clients.” Saimo Chahal of Bindmans LLP is praised for her "incredible intelligence, experience and efficiency." (Chambers 2010)
Administrative & Public Law: Traditional Claimant (Band 2)
Civil Liberties (Band 1)
Healthcare: Mental Health: Patients (Star Individuals)
Civil Liberties: Prison Law (Band 2)
Saimo's full profile in Chambers 2010
Chambers 2010
Civil Liberties - London and UK-wide (Ranked in Band 1)
Health & Social Care: Mental Health (Patients) - London and UK-wide (Ranked in Band 1)
Saimo's full profile in Chambers 2010
Civil liberties & human rights: ranked in 1st tier - Leading Individual
Healthcare - ranked in 2nd tier - Leading Individual
Administrative & public law: ranked in 1st tier
Saimo's full profile in Legal 500 (2010)
Legal 500 (2009)
Administrative and public law - ranked in 1st tier
Civil liberties and human rights - ranked in 1st tier - Leading Individual
Healthcare - ranked in 2nd tier - Leading Individual
Saimo's full profile in Legal 500 (2009)